MH-265 Qua - Q&AQ&A, the latest release from Melbourne, Australia’s Qua (Cornel Wilczek), is a collection of twelve compositions brushed with strokes of guitar and electronics on a canvas of drums provided by James Cecil (Architecture in Helsinki) and Laurence Pike (Savath + Savalas, Pivot, Triosk). Qua has made the mastery of breathing life into every blip his stock in trade, and Q&A is no different. This music is very live - there are more drums, guitar and analog synths than computers - and explores tempos far north of those found in his previous work. In addition to the top-flight musicianship on display, Qua's deft knack for arrangement adds an uncanny vibrancy to each zero and one. With his feet on the dance-floor and his hand on vintage equipment, Qua has taken one step closer to perfecting his painstaking yet playful style.

Tracklist

01. Lapsang Souchong

02. Ritmo Giallo

03. Circles

04. All Breath, No Body

05. Goodmorning Sun

06. Sun Down

07. Dance Of The Three Fours

08. The Lion's Flying Dream

09. Yes Sir, No Sir

10. Stars Align

11. The Magnificent Mister

12. Evening Bell

Release Details

Release Date: 04/27/2010

Running Time: 44:55

Download/Available/$7.00

CD/Available/$10.00

LOSSLESS/Available/$10.00

Territory: World Excluding Australia

Reviews Summary

Think Stereolab's highly-textured instrumental/synth arrangements gone further out there, and you're getting close to what's happening here. Highly recommended. - 3D World / It might be one of the year’s most fun albums. - Cokemachine Glow / A fun, blippy style that can hit hard, scale it back, or get bodies moving. - Alarm Press

This third longplayer from Cornel Wilzcek (AKA Qua) certainly represents a considerably different proposition to the sunny, dreamlike soundscapes of 2004's Painting Monsters On Clouds, something that's apparently the result of Wilzcek writing the entire album standing up. Q&A sees him injecting far more percussion and propulsive rhythm into his highly-textured tracks, resulting in a collection that’s as close to being Qua's "dance" album to date. If opening track "Lapsang Souchong" sees Wilzcek flirting with straightforward house elements, "Ritmo Giallo" sees 8-bit synths battling for space with Latin samba textures. Elsewhere, "Dance of the Three Fours" hints at Squarepusher's contorted breakbeats gone prog-folk, with Pivot/Triosk's Lawrence Pike supplying plenty of fierce raw drum firepower. Think Stereolab's highly-textured instrumental/synth arrangements gone further out there, and you're getting close to what's happening here. Highly recommended. - 3D World